Frances Coles' Crape Hat

[Robert St Devil]

1. Does this aspect of the Frances Coles' crime scene add to the suspicion of the presence of Jack the Ripper's MO?
2. Why did he remove the bonnet?
* On another note, Catherine Eddowes was discovered wearing her bonnet.

Frances Coles
East London Advertiser, Saturday, 14 February 1891
She was bareheaded, and while one arm was stretched by her side, the other was bent towards the breast. By her side lay a black crape hat, and in the pocket of her dress were several pieces of black lace or crape and a vulcanite earring.

Mary Ann "Polly" Nicholls
Morning Advertiser (London), 3 September 1888
Her eyes were wide open. Her bonnet was off and lying at her side, close to the left hand. I heard a constable passing Brady street...

Elizabeth Stride
Morning Advertiser (London), 1 October 1888
She wore a rusty black dress of the cheap kind of sateen, with a velveteen bodice, over which was a black diagonal worsted jacket with fur trimming. Her bonnet, which had fallen from her head, was of black crape, and inside, apparently with the object of making the article fir more closely to the head, was folded a copy of an evening newspaper.

[Fisherman]

Question: were these bonnets tied under the chin, or just put on the head wothout tying them?

[Pcdunn]

Bonnets are generally made of soft material, or straw, cover the ears but not forehead, and are held on the head by ribbons or strings. If the woman was wearing it properly, then it would have been tied, I think.

We don't know from the information available how any of the women wore their bonnets.

[Parker_Pyne79]

Frances Coles was not a canonical 5 victim, so her case could have been unrelated to the ripper murders, hence the bonnet.

[Errata]

Bonnets are generally made of soft material, or straw, cover the ears but not forehead, and are held on the head by ribbons or strings. If the woman was wearing it properly, then it would have been tied, I think.

We don't know from the information available how any of the women wore their bonnets.

It's a weight thing. Evenly distributed weight or back heavy is tied under the chin, a front heavy hat is tied behind the ears like a bandanna.

Crepe bonnets were light, and without pins being used would be tied under the chin, as it would fly off in a stiff gust of wind otherwise. Crepe just doesn't have the weight to reliably stay put without the ties.

[Joshua Rogan]

Was the wire frame of a bonnet just to give it shape, or did it act as a spring to clamp it to the wearer's head (kind of like deeply boppers)?

[miss marple]

The bonnets of the 1880s were perched on top of the head and tied with ribbon under the chin, nothing like the earlier bonnets of the 19th century which masked the face. I have one from the 1880s. There were wired around the edge.Hair was piled on top of the head.Wealthy women could have them pinned into their elaborate hairstyles often involving false hair. The East ender women had no money but they could follow fashion with the bonnet on top of the head.

Miss Marple

[Robert St Devil]

I hadn't seen this sketch before. William "Jumbo" Friday took two staff from Lloyd's Weekly to the spot where he had seen the couple and the sketch was done on the spot till he was happy with the result.

Lloyds Weekly
15 February 1891

Hello Parker.

Here is a picture located under the Frances Coles thread.

I was questioning whether finding a bonnet aside the body of Frances Coles shared similarities alongside these other canonical victims... as if it was a part of the murderer's MO.